Respect your opinion! but I still think he could have been treated better after playing in all those cup games.

It paid off as we held the challenge cup up. He knew deep down he was never going to keep his place.

It's like Gaskell now, he came in and showed form to suggest he's going to be very good player but can't get a look due to hohaia but Gaskell has stuck with us (so far) and knows times on his side.

To be fair Goulding and Lance are so far apart, that they are on different planets.

I'm trying to point out to the poster that every coach in rugby league would have put bobbie back in for the final. He was the heart beat of our team, our main man. It's not like he was coming back from injury and could have broke down.

I'm also saying, maybe lee should have stuck it out a little longer and maybe would have broke in to the side. He was only young kid.

Nice when you've GOT A BUBBLE TO BURST THOUGH!





Rock 'n' Roll.

Exactly. It's Briers' loss not our's.

Exactly, when saints look back we will see many challenge cups, super leagues, grand finals, league leaders shields, world champions.

When lee looks back he will see two challenge cups and one league leaders shield.

I think we made correct choice myself.

Our Bubble was bigger when it burst though. Yours has barely left the bubble pot. Ours had been growing for years.

The real Wigoon bubble burst was back in the 90's though when it all came out just how skint you were . (The price of beating part timers to meaningless titles)

What's that got to do with anything? The point is that a supposed top class professional sportsman was on the lash up to the very last possible minute he could get away with before dashing over the Pennines (undoubtedly while over the legal limit...) to get to an uber important game in his team's season. Nobody's doubting Brier's talent and I'd have him in a Saints shirt next season in a heartbeat - the point being made was his professionalism (and basic common sense while we're at it) and that is demonstrably open to question to say the very least... He'd be a darn sight better player undoubtedly with a just little application of either/both sense and professionalism.

"Growing for years".. When it comes to "years" check the books, it's the Pie's who have all the history and that's what all you men can't stand! "Wigan is the heart of Rugby League, and always will be"...







Rock 'n' Roll.

Most of your "History" was as a fully Pro side against Semi Pro sides. Mortgaged yourselves up to the hilt for a little success.

So close.

That 10 years of cheating your way to all those trophies was well worth your club now sleeping rough on the streets of Wigan, begging cap in hand to Latics for a cup of tea and a warm place to sleep every now and then, eh?

Not a bad attempt at trolling , the old ones are the best after all. The thing with Wigoon fans is , even when you were skint and homeless (I suppose Orrell counts as a home) you always maintained your arrogance and deluded view of the world.

"were"? That makes it sound like its a thing of the past, should have read "are skint and homeless"

Cheating? Is that what you call going professional before the rest could?

Anyway, my point was simply that whatever your opinion is of/however you class what Wigan did in the era immediately before SL, it can hardly be dismissed as 'a little success'.

The full time pro stuff wasnt cheating it just means what was achieved against part timers doesnt compare to the old Part time v Part time or Superleague (all full times pro's). It means something to Goon fans obviously but pretty much nobody else cares.

Wigoon did a fair bit of cheating with uncle Mo in charge though, read Chris Joynt's book for a great example

Well said....

There's no way I'm defending Maurice as squeaky clean



I'm all for bias towards your team, but that's taking it too far!

You do realise that Leeds went full time before Wigan (didn't do them much good!) don't you?

No fuss was made about Wigan going full time back in the day, because most leading clubs were more or less full time anyway by then, including St Helens.

I remember Ian Lucas giving up the antiques business, that got the headlines, there was no mention of Wigan "cheating" by being "professionals" playing "amateurs".

I think this is something Wigan fans just like to say to try to add some value to what you 'achieved' . Wigoon had a full time pro squad of players on very very good money (as was proven when the salary cap came in and you had average players on world class salaries), add to that all the money you put on tick to develop facilities etc and Wigoon was a full time pro club on the Rugby side if somewhat amateur on the finances.

Speak to some of the players around clubs like Saints during this period and its pretty clear they were semi pro at best with the odd full time player

whats all this got to do with Matty Smith ?

For me, spending huge amounts of money that noone else has (and, as it turns out, you don't actually have either) to gain an unfair advantage in the competition for a decade might not be cheating [iper se[/i, but it's not particularly far off. And yes, add in all of Uncle Mo's little "trick plays" and "cheating" starts to become as good a word as any.

I'm sure if you're a pie then that 8 on the trot still keeps you warm at night, but ultimately it really wasn't a particularly great achievement in the greater scheme of things all things considered. The fact that Saints on a fraction of the resources kicked your asses in '92/'93 for example ranks way above it in the annals of RL attainment.

Its getting desparate for us if we are thinking of signing Phil Veivers again.